Abstract

In Mediterranean regions, extreme weather conditions during the growing season may alter grapevine physiology and metabolism, thus modifying the quality of wines. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of Ascophyllum nodosum treatments on plant physiology and berry metabolism in Vitis vinifera exposed to water stress. The experiment was performed on potted vines subjected to two irrigation regimes (well-watered, WW, and water stressed, WS) both associated with A. nodosum treatments (SWE), compared with control plants (CTRL). Gas exchanges, chlorophyll fluorescence, and water relations were monitored on SWE and CTRL leaves, both in WW and WS vines at three times. Moreover, the quantification of secondary metabolites and their partitioning were performed in berry skins. Plants treated with A. nodosum extract showed higher photosynthesis and stomatal conductance than CTRL in both irrigation regimes and maintained a better plant hydraulic conductivity at the end of the sampling period. In addition, secondary metabolites in berry skins and their partitioning were significantly affected by the treatments in both irrigation regimes. Our results suggest that foliar application of A. nodosum extract may help the acclimation of grapevines to post-veraison water stress, likely improving plant physiological and biochemical performances under environmental constraints.

Highlights

  • Soil water deficit is the main environmental constraint for viticulture in the Mediterranean basin [1,2]

  • Skewness and kurtosis showed that each dataset approximatelynormally normally distributed

  • The increments of leaf gas exchanges and water potentials following A. nodosum treatments were previously reported in other species

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Summary

Introduction

Soil water deficit is the main environmental constraint for viticulture in the Mediterranean basin [1,2]. Climate projections for this area predict changes in rainfall and seasonal temperature patterns in the decades, with a higher frequency of extreme climate events [3,4]. These future trends due to global climate change are expected to negatively affect grapevine physiology and grape quality.

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